Charge for probing wrecks considered

September 19, 2006

Lake in the Hills trustees didn't want to be the first municipality to start an accident-investigation cost recovery program, so last week they tabled plans for an ordinance.

The board and other village officials discussed at a Saturday workshop giving police authority to charge the insurance companies of people responsible for accidents for traffic investigations. Trustees were torn and decided they didn't want to be the test case for Illinois.

Since their initial discussion, the village had been flooded with queries from neighboring towns and several out-of-state police departments asking how the ordinance would be enforced, said James Wales, director of public safety.

"We are doing the work for insurance companies anyway," Wales said, adding that the companies use the village's police reports to determine who is at fault.

The biggest critic was Trustee Liz Wakeman, a personal injury lawyer who said the measure would eliminate due process.

"An officer at an accident scene would make the judgment and decide who would pay," Wakeman said. "It is extremely difficult to get good information there. Both sides are shaken up, upset and startled."

Trustees also gave Wales the OK to put a camera at Randall Road and Acorn Lane to curb red-light running at the intersection. Leasing the camera would cost $4,500 per month, Wales said.